My dearest friends, readers, and prospective students:
Today, on the day before I start my clinical rotation, I'm hanging up my hat and posting for the last time on Just a Pinch. The decision to close this corner of the internet was not easy, but it is a decision that I am at peace with.
I have grown so much these last 15 months in Seattle - and so have my ambitions and dreams. While I loved sharing the more intimate aspects of my life, I have outgrown the original intentions of this blog. For the past few months, I've struggled with finding the direction I hoped to take Just a Pinch, and as I reflected on my post-graduation plans, maintaining Just a Pinch didn't align with my goals.
But that's not to say you can't find me on other parts ... View Post

Hello dear readers! Happy holidays! Today is my 29th birthday. TWENTY NINE. Where on earth does the time go?! I wanted to pop in and say hello from Boise, ID, where I'm spending the holidays with my family. This will be my last post of 2016, and I wanted to end it with a few fun updates for y'all! Since a few of you have asked, what's next with my program?
Dietetic internship
For the next 8ish months, I'll be a dietetic intern at various sites around Washington. I'm starting with a 10-week clinical rotation and will move to my 7-8 week practicum next. My cohort will still convene once a week, and I'll have weekly assignments to complete. So while classes are officially over, the work doesn't stop!
Defending my thesis
I cannot believe I'm actually ... View Post

have actually had this post in my drafts box since last May! It covers such an important topic, that I don't mind sharing it a few months late :) In our nutrition counseling class last spring quarter, we discussed strategies to building meaningful relationships with clients. Nutrition counseling is not simply developing a meal-plan for someone. It's about exploring the multiple facets of a person's past, present, and future that drive their decision-making and eating behaviors.
Strong provider-client relationships are built on connection. And the best way to connect with someone - especially someone seeking help - is to practice empathy.
Notice that I didn't say "be empathetic". Rather, I said practice empathy.
Yes, there is a ... View Post

At approximately 12PM PST, I will finish my VERY LAST class as a graduate student. I have paper cups and two bottles of champagne in my purse, just waiting to pop when we walk out of class. Friends, family, blog readers, and everyone in between....today is a huge day for us. Over three grueling years of prerequisite and graduate coursework is finally complete. I start my dietetic internship in just about three weeks...but until then, we celebrate.
In the words of Elle Woods from Legally Blonde, "WE DID IT!" ... View Post

Happy Tuesday, friends! I hope you had a nice, holiday-spirit-filled weekend. Today, I'm so excited to share a few photos that my incredibly talented roommate captured of our adventure to Carnation Christmas Tree Farm. My roommates and I planned this outing months ago, and despite the fact that two of us should have been studying for finals...it was a complete success!
Many of my recent posts have centered around how busy and tired I am, so I'm trying to highlight snippets of my life outside of the hectic school sphere. Finding a balance between living my life, and living to study, is a challenge I've worked through for the last year. I now know that I need time and space away from cramming in ... View Post

Hi friends! And welcome to my new little series, "Little Joys". Each week (or every other week!), I plan to highlight of all the fun and amazing people, events, opportunities, and activities that I experienced in an effort to shift my focus on to the positives. I talk a lot about how powerful our minds are, but I don't always put what I teach into practice. As we head straight into winter (probably the most depressing time in Seattle!), I am going to work extra hard to stay positive. You may remember the "Just a Pinch Of" series...this will be very similar!
The holidays
Thanksgiving in Boise with my family was absolutely perfect. I really enjoyed seeing their new home, checking out their favorite spots, and exploring the hiking scene near our ... View Post

Hello and welcome!

I'm LAUREN, and I started Just a Pinch in 2014 when I was applying to graduate school to become a registered dietitian nutritionist. In 2017, I started my own small business, Nutrition Elevated, LLC, to help share the breadth of knowledge I learned as a nutrition graduate student at the University of Washington in Seattle!